Bonding
by Dessi Marie
Summary: This is some father/son bonding between Sirius and Harry. NO SLASH! Challenge set down by TheSundayBlues. Rating for abuse. Non-graphic.


Okay another challenge fic this time from TheSundayBlues titled Christmas Challenge. Here is the challenge:

Set in 5th year. Harry spends his Christmas break at GrimmauldPlace. While there, Sirius realizes just how little he really knows his Godson. Must have some mentions of abuse (sexual references allowed, as well if you'd like). Can be as graphic, or as non-graphic, as you wish. Can be any length you like, but the longer the better.

Warnings: Hmm for once I honestly don't know how to do this. Of course there are mentions of abuse, not sexual though, and it is not graphic. I would say it is rated M for abuse. Otherwise it is very fluffy father/son bonding between Sirius and Harry.

I will interchange the names Sirius, Paddy and Padfoot as they are the same person. Also note I do not actually know that much about Grimmauld Place but I am going to use my imagination, which is seriously underused...

This is a short story... Enjoy :D

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All was quiet on the morning of December 25 in number 12 Grimmauld Place as Sirius crept into his godson's room to wake him up. You see, Sirius is very much like that overeager child on Christmas morning, someone who can't wait until mum and dad have woken up before asking every five minutes if he could open that toy that taunted him since he woke up.

Unlike that eager child Sirius was a Marauder. As soon as Sirius was through the door he swiftly changed into a big black dog before creeping slowly towards the foot of Harry's bed. Gently moving the blanket, Padfoot found his prize, Harry's foot. Snickering Sirius put his nose in the arch of Harry's foot and exhaled quickly, causing the teen to giggle in his sleep but only roll over to get away from the coldness of Padfoot's nose.

Disappointed Sirius tried again, this time using a different tactic. Lightly jumping on Harry's bed, well as lightly as a dog Padfoot's size can be, Padfoot trotted up until he was near Harry's head. Grinning, Padfoot proceeded to lick Harry's face and neck covering him in dog drool. Harry sat upright so quickly that Padfoot was in danger of being thrown of the bed. Padfoot quickly transformed back to Sirius.

"Yuck Paddy! I don't know where your mouth was in the last few days, now I have your slobber all over my face!"

"Aw, come on Harry, it was just a bit of fun," Sirius said while leaning closer to Harry as if trying to share a secret. "Besides, I brushed my teeth."

The expression in which Sirius confided this in had Harry turning red while trying to hold in his laughter, Harry sobered quickly though when he realised that today was in fact Christmas. Sirius noticed this immediately and was instantly on alert.

"Harry? What's wrong?"

"Nothing," Harry mumbled getting out of bed and going to the bathroom to do his daily rituals of getting ready for the day.

_Something is wrong and I am going to find out..._ Sirius thought as he went to the kitchen and began to get breakfast started. Harry came down and set the table as Sirius dished out two plates. They ate while talking about Harry's friends and Hogwarts.

After breakfast they set the dishes to washing themselves and went to the living room where the tree and presents were. Harry brightened at seeing the presents and Sirius waved his wand making the presents divide into two piles, one was significantly bigger. This pile was Harry's.

"Have at it pup." Sirius said with a grin on his face as he picked up a present that was for him and shook it.

"You know you will not find out what it is unless you open it Paddy." Harry snickered.

Playing along, Sirius turned the present over looking for a way to open it without shredding the paper it was wrapped in. Finding it he looked towards Harry and proceeded to open it, "like this?"

Harry just rolled his eyes and laughed at his godfather. Picking up a rectangular present he found that it was from Sirius. Opening it he noticed that it was a wizarding photo album with pictures of James, Lily, Remus, a young Harry and a handsome Sirius, one who wasn't haunted by memories of dementors.

Forgetting his other presents, he flipped through the album. Pictures of James and Lily's wedding smattered the first few pages.

"You know I fixed up the pictures that had Peter in them. I didn't think you would want to look at his face every time you wanted to look in the album." Sirus said softly but Harry wasn't paying attention because he was so immersed in the photos.

His breath caught when he found a picture dated as his first Christmas and then it was followed by a couple others the last one was dated a few weeks before that fateful night when Peter would betray his friends and Voldedmort will take away his family leaving him to be sent off to his mother's family, if you could call them that. Sirius who had been watching peeked over Harry's shoulder and after seeing what Harry was looking at he took the photo album from the now silently crying Harry. Pulling Harry into a hug Sirius tried to comfort his godson.

After Harry calmed down Sirius asked, "do you want to talk about it?" When he got no reply except Harry's eyes shifting to look at the tree he continued trying to coax Harry into talking. "You know after I got back from Azkaban I found talking with Remus helped me with what happened that night. It could help you."

Harry sighed, "you know when I accepted to come here for Christmas I was so excited because it would be the first 'family' Christmas I could remember but I seem to have been able to make myself upset over a few pictures."

Sirius looked astonished, "what do you mean 'the first _family_ Christmas you could remember'?"

"Just that, you know what just forget I said anything and let us enjoy the holiday."

"No, I wont forget it what did you mean?" Sirius' eyes widened when a particularly nasty thought came to mind. "What did Lily's wretched sister and that husband of hers do to you?"

Harry sighed again, knowing that Sirius would find out later from Ron or Hermione if he questioned them. "Why don't I show you? Do you have a pensieve?"

"Of course, let me go get it."

Sirius left the room to get the pensieve and along the way he wondered how Harry knew of pensieves and what he could possibly see. Finding it he went back to the living room and set it in front of Harry and watched as Harry placed a few strands of memory in the basin. Finally voicing his curiosity, "you seem to know enough about pensieves, don't you pup?"

"Yeah, I kinda fell into Dumbledore's, after that he taught me how to use one." (A/N: I know it's not true but let's go along with it, okay? Oh let's also pretend that Sirius knows Dudley, Vernon and Petunia)

"Oh," was all Sirius said as he watched Harry place a few more memory strands in. After he was done Harry motioned for Sirius to look. Sirius placed a finger in the basin and was pulled into Harry's memories.

The first memory that Sirius viewed showed Harry to be about seven and Dudley was ripping open present after present as Harry stared at a box of dog biscuits. After Dudley had diminished the pile of presents to nothing but wrapping paper Petunia ordered Harry to go fix the Christmas dinner.

The next few memories were the same except the pile of Dudley's presents got bigger, all the time Dudley gloated, and Harry got nothing. This irked Sirius to no ends. Also the name calling that came from the Dursley's got progressively worse.

The second last one started out like the rest but as the day wore on the Dursley's got physically abusive towards Harry, going as far as hitting him with a fly-swatter when he slowed down. Vernon actually got up and smacked Harry upside the head, hard, while telling the boy to hurry up that people were hungry.

The last one however was the one that pissed Sirius off so much that he was ready to actually commit a murder or two, maybe three. It started out like the one before but when Harry would do something that they deemed wrong, he got hit. Anything the Dursley's could find they hit Harry with it; fists, shoes, a spatula. By the end of the memory Sirius was shaking with rage that these muggles would harm as much as a hair on Harry's head.

Sirius pulled out of the pensieve quickly and immediately engulfed Harry into a comforting hug, all the while Sirius muttered things about murdering the bastards and about how family shouldn't behave that way to other members of said family. Also muttering words of apology that he had acted on impulse and went after Pettigrew and being sent to Azkaban because of a wrong accusation.

Harry had succumbed to crying again at hearing his godfather blame himself for something he had no control over. After some time Sirius pulled away and wiped the tears from Harry's face.

"You know, after this war is over and my name is cleared, I am going to give you the family life you deserve." Sirius said with conviction. Harry's face brightened immediately. "But first, I think we still have to open presents!" Sirius continued gleefully.

"Yeah Paddy, we should finish opening presents." Harry said smiling.

The day passed quickly and before either knew it, it was time for Harry to return to Hogwarts. Dumbledore came and collected Harry and after a few hugs and goofing around Harry was settled back in his dorm. The year proceeded quickly as Harry looked forward to seeing Sirius again. But then the most horrible thing happened at the Ministry of Magic.

As Dumbledore's Army fought a group of Death Eaters, the Order of the Phoenix came, including Sirius. A fight erupted between Lucius and Sirius. Sirius had gotten Lucius unarmed and blasted him back a few feet when Bellatrix decided to play dirty by stupefying Sirius. But before Sirius could fall he entered the veil.

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Well? Please review and let me know what you think...


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